State
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Mississippi Today
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WDAM
To look back on the first days of statehood is to witness a naturally pristine Mississippi of ancient forests, Delta alluvial plains, waterways, hills in the north contrasted by a flat, sandy coastline bordering the Gulf of Mexico.
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http://www.sunherald.com/news/business/article141897444.html Press Releases
Paul Mickle, Ph.D., named Chief Scientific Officer for DMR BILOXI, Miss. – Paul F. Mickle, Ph.D., has been named the chief scientific officer for the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, Executive Director Jamie Miller announced Thursday.
Mickle currently serves as deputy director of the Finfish Bureau in the Office of Marine Fisheries. He takes over as CSO on Monday, April 3.
“Dr. Mickle has worked in our Office of Marine Fisheries since 2014 and has proven to be an exceptional scientist and communicator,” Miller said. “I believe his education and experience will serve the agency well as he takes on this new role.”
Mickle received his bachelor’s degree in environmental science from the University of Florida. He earned his master’s degree in biology and his doctoral degree in biology with an emphasis in fish ecology from the University of Southern Mississippi. Mickle was a post-doctoral fellow at USM’s Gulf Coast Research Lab.
He began working at DMR in September 2014. Currently he teaches at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and serves on graduate committees at Southern Miss.
“My passion is having a positive impact on sustainability and still allowing access to the resource,” Mickle said. “I look forward to being in a position where I will have a larger role in coastal restoration, fisheries management and preserving coastal habitats. I believe being the chief scientific officer allows me to do that.”
Mickle lives in Gulfport with his wife, Lindsey, and their 5-year-old son Tanner.
The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources is dedicated to enhancing, protecting and conserving marine interests of the state by managing all marine life, public trust wetlands, adjacent uplands and waterfront areas to provide for the optimal commercial, recreational, educational and economic uses of these resources consistent with environmental concerns and social changes. Visit the DMR online at dmr.ms.gov.
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USDA Offers Renewal Options for Expiring Conservation Stewardship Program Contracts
USDA’s Largest Conservation Program Helps Producers Improve Health, Productivity of Working Lands WASHINGTON, March 30, 2017 – Acting Deputy Agriculture Secretary Michael Young today announced that a contract renewal sign-up is underway for the
Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), USDA’s largest working lands conservation program with more than 80 million acres enrolled. USDA’s
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) made several updates to the popular program last fall. These changes help producers better evaluate conservation options that benefit their operations while improving the health and productivity of private and Tribal working lands.
“The changes made to CSP are providing even greater opportunities for stewardship-minded producers across the country to participate and bring their conservation efforts to a higher level,” said Young. “The new tools and methods for evaluating operations, expanded options to address the producer’s conservation and business objectives, and the focus on local resource priorities have resulted in a 30 percent increase in applications for this widely popular program.”
Participants with existing CSP contracts that will expire on Dec. 31 can access the benefits of the recent program changes through an option to renew their contracts for an additional five years if they agree to adopt additional activities to achieve higher levels of conservation on their lands. Applications to renew expiring contracts are due by May 5.
Through CSP, agricultural producers and forest landowners earn payments for actively managing, maintaining, and expanding conservation activities like cover crops, buffer strips, pollinator and beneficial insect habitat, and soil health building activities – all while maintaining active agricultural production on their land. Benefits to producers can include:
- Improved cattle gains per acre;
- Increased crop yields;
- Decreased inputs;
- Wildlife population improvements; and
- Better resilience to weather extremes.
“CSP is for working lands,” said Young. “Thousands of people have made the choice to voluntarily enroll in the program because it helps them enhance natural resources and improve their business operation.”
Producers interested in contract renewals or applying for CSP for the first time should visit
www.nrcs.usda.gov/csp or contact their local
USDA service center to learn more.
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